Renting

Rent board, court, and legal aid

Pick the safer first stop for a rent increase, deposit problem, repair issue, eviction notice, discrimination concern, or court paper.

Official link Last reviewed June 30, 2026

Why it matters

California rent questions can have three layers at once: statewide rules, local rent rules, and court deadlines. A careful first move is to sort the paper in your hand, find the local office if there is one, and use court or legal-aid help before a deadline gets close.

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Renting

Rent increases, deposits, notices, repairs, and local help.

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First moves

1
Write down the address, city, county, landlord or manager name, lease dates, notice date, deadline, rent amount, and deposit amount.
2
Keep the envelope, email, text, notice, lease, receipts, photos, repair requests, and any court papers together.
3
Check whether the city or county has a local rent board, housing department, or tenant-protection office.
4
If the paper came from a court or talks about an unlawful detainer, start with California Courts self-help and the local court.
5
If time is short, look for legal aid right away. Do not wait for a perfect answer before asking for help.
6
For a rent increase, compare the notice, date, amount, building, and local rule before relying on a statewide shortcut.
7
For a deposit issue, gather move-in photos, move-out photos, receipts, the itemized statement, and the date you returned the keys.
8
For repairs or safety, keep a dated list, photos, messages, and any city inspection or code complaint number.
9
For discrimination or harassment concerns, save dates, names, messages, ads, applications, and notices before contacting the official help source.

Watch for

1
A local rent board can answer local rent-rule questions, but court papers still belong with the court or legal help.
2
Some cities have strong local rules. Some places do not have a local rent board at all.
3
A notice from a landlord is not the same thing as a court judgment.
4
Court deadlines can move quickly. If a court paper is involved, check the court source first.
5
Statewide rent-cap, just-cause, deposit, and notice rules have exceptions. The address, building, dates, and paperwork matter.
6
Repair, mold, heat, water, pest, lock, and safety issues can involve the landlord, city code office, health office, or court depending on the facts.
7
Fair housing and discrimination questions may belong with the Civil Rights Department, a local fair-housing office, legal aid, or the court.

Directory paths

Keep moving through the directory.

Use the nearby shelf when this is the right lane, or jump back to the full directory if the task changed names.

ShelfRentingRent increases, deposits, notices, repairs, and local help.DirectoryPaperwork & MoneyReturn to the full tools shelf.Nearby toolMove-out deposit record checkA calm checklist for photos, keys, inspection notes, itemized deductions, receipts, and the first official help sources if the deposit gets messy.Nearby toolRent, deposit, and notice checkA first-stop checklist for a rent increase, move-out deposit, or notice from the landlord.A-ZFind another California pathUse the directory index when the task has a different name.